Billy Vunipola addresses reports he'd fallen out with England teammates

Friday, 20 November 2020 at 22:03

byRugby Rucker

Despite reports in a number of newspapers, Billy Vunipola says his decision to not take a knee before England matches hasn't caused any division in the camp.

Addressing the reports to Sky Sports, he said: "It's been blown up. We're a diverse group and we all support each others believes and respect them.

"I support them and they support me. It doesn't matter what they think or what they believe, we're on the same team and that's the most important thing.

"When we're on the pitch none of that matters."

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He has previously explained why he will not take the knee before matches..

“A similar situation happened with the Black Lives Matter movement last week when we were asked if we want to take a knee or not,” Vunipola told The Good, The Bad & The Rugby podcast.

“What I saw in terms of that movement was not aligned with what I believe in. They were burning churches and Bibles. I can’t support that.

“Even though I am a person of colour, I’m still more a person of, I guess, Jesus.”

And the RFU has backed the players who made the choice not to take the knee.

A spokeswoman said: ‘During the Autumn Nations Cup, Twickenham Stadium is featuring messages of support for Rugby Against Racism, Black Lives Matter and the NHS.

‘England’s men’s and women’s players and match officials are given the choice on how and if they wish to make gestures to help raise awareness for diversity and inclusion before the start of each game.

‘The RFU supports any players’ decision and equally believes the plans off the England stage are as important in driving necessary improvement and change across all areas of our game.’

9 Unexpected Pairs of Rugby Stars We Didn’t Know Were Related

1. Beno Obano & Maro Itoje

There is a picture on Beno Obano’s Instagram account of his mother, Patricia, holding him and Maro Itoje together as babies. Born three days apart, the cousins this week took part in a senior England training camp together for the first time.

2. Jerry Collins & Sinoti Sinoti

Sinoti Sinoti - a cousin of late All Blacks great Jerry Collins - scored the opening try in Newcastle's 28-20 home win on Sunday, inspiring this list. We previously didn't know the two were related. Collins was also a cousin to the Umaga brothers, Mike and Tana, but that is more well known.

3. Quade Cooper & Sean Maitland

Quade Cooper and Sean Maitland are cousins and were both born in the north of New Zealand. While Cooper moved to Brisbane in his teens and became a star of the Wallabies, Maitland headed to Christchurch to join the Canterbury Crusaders before heeding his Glaswegian grandfather’s words to remember his roots and headed for Scotland.

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4. Doug Howlett & Nili Latu

All Black Howlett and Tonga legend Latu are also cousins, sharing family on the Pacific Island.

5. Andy, Connor, Liam & Owen Farrell

Liam Farrell is an English rugby league footballer who plays for the Wigan Warriors in the Super League and England as a second-row or loose forward. His younger brother Connor Farrell also plays for Wigan. They are both cousins of Andy Farrell, making them cousins once removed of Owen.

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6. Ben & Tom Curry and John & Sam Olver

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7. Nigel Owens & Ioan Nicholas

Scarlets and Wales U20 centre Ioan Nicholas is the cousin of top referee Nigel Owens.

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8. John Ashworth and Brodie Retallick

Brodie, who has 72 caps for the All Blacks, won the Rugby World Cup in 2015 and was the winner of World Rugby Player of the Year in 2014 and is the award's youngest ever winner. His uncle, John, played 52 matches for the All Blacks between 1977 and 1985.

WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - SEPTEMBER 13: Brodie Retallick of the All Blacks carries the ball in a maul during The Rugby Championship match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the South Africa Springboks at Westpac Stadium on September 13, 2014 in Wellington, New Zealand. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)